Accepted International Students

Apply for your Study Permit: 

With the evolving Covid-19 pandemic, we recommend that students and applicants stay up to date with any immigration policy changes that relate to the current situation. Please visit the Canadian government website.for more information.  

You must have a valid Study Permit (Visa) to study at George Brown Polytechnic. Apply for your Study Permit / Visa at the Canadian Embassy, High Commission, or Consulate nearest you using your Offer Letter & receipt of payment. Students currently holding a study permit/visa and transferring from high school/secondary level are now allowed by IRCC to study at post-secondary institutions as long as the Study Permit is still valid. 

Protected Persons, Refugee Claimants, or Convention Refugees are required to obtain a study permit for engaging in academic, professional, vocational or other education or training that is more than 6 months in duration. If a program takes more than 6 months to complete, students must have a study permit before beginning their program at George Brown Polytechnic. Convention refugees and protected persons are permitted to pay domestic fees. Refugee claimants are required to pay international fees until they receive a “notice of decision” or have an employer-specific work permit (in which case, they can pay domestic fees). 

All Study Permit applicants must record the George Brown Polytechnic Designated Learning Institution (DLI) Number O19283850612 on their study permit applications. (Note that the first character of the DLI number is a capital letter O and not a zero).

Visa-exempt foreign nationals are expected to have an Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA) to fly to or transit through Canada. Exceptions include U.S. citizens, and travelers with a valid Canadian visa. Information on how to apply for an eTA can be found on the government of Canada’s official website to apply for an eTA.  

Apply for your Work Permit, if required for your program: 

A work permit is a document required by IRCC before international students can start their field placement, work placement, externship, practicum or volunteer work, even if these placements are unpaid or located within the George Brown Polytechnic premises. We strongly encourage you to apply for a Work Permit at the same time as your Study Permit, especially if your program requires a work placement during the 1st or 2nd semester. Students without appropriate Work Permit will not be able to do the required placement and will not be able to graduate from the program. 

Students in programs that require placements involving long term care homes/facilities, onsite or offsite clinics/hospital settings and/or interaction with families and children in Canada, such as School of Dental Health programs, Community Services & Early Childhood programs, Social & Community Services programs, Health Sciences programs, H402 (Food & Nutrition Management), and C137 (Assaulted Women’s & Children’s Counsellor/Advocate) are required by the IRCC to undergo a medical exam by a Panel Physician.   

Medical exams performed by a Panel Physician are valid for up to 12 months. If you completed a medical exam for your visa application and it is still valid, you may be able to submit proof of this medical with your application for a co-op work permit. The IRCC medical exam is in addition to completing the mandatory program-specific pre-placement health forms which may be required by your academic department, visit the placement webpage for details. For more information on how to find a panel physician visit the Government of Canada website and choose your country or region. 

Work permit processing takes longer if done within Canada. Processing will be even longer if you are required by IRCC to undergo medical exam by Panel Physicians. Additional costs apply as these are not covered by Health/Medical Insurance. Be sure to check the Canadian immigration website for processing times.  

Reset Your Password:  

You are required to reset your password immediately upon receipt of your letter of acceptance. To do so, you will need to log in to service.georgebrown.ca with the Student ID and Password you received on your Letter of Acceptance, create a new password and set-up some security questions. Your new password will be valid for one year and will expire automatically every year. 

Registration Procedure:  

To choose your courses in the program, you must register online. Check the registration start date for programs and respective semesters by going to STU-VIEW. If you register at the start of your registration period, you will be assured a seat in all courses required for the semester and you will have a better selection of courses and timetable. Use your Student ID number and Password to log on to STU-VIEW to register and choose your courses during the scheduled registration period. Follow the on-screen instructions. 

Password/Registration Help:  

If you have problems with your password or you are unable to log on to STU-VIEW or you have difficulty registering for courses, please call 1-416-415-2000 or 1-800-265-2002 for help. Press option 1, then press 0 to speak to an agent directly. You can also contact ask.george@georgebrown.ca for help. 

Activate your George Brown Polytechnic Student E-mail Address:  

All George Brown students are given an email address which must be activated after registration of courses or just before the start of classes. Important notices from the College including your assignments from your teachers, and communications from College staff will be made through this George Brown e-mail account. You can activate your George Brown e-mail account online here. 

Most post-secondary students are required to take the Placement Test for English or Math, or both, depending on individual program requirements. There is no fee for placement testing. 

There is a deadline date to take a Placement Test. However, for those still outside Canada, Placement Tests can be taken upon arrival prior to the start of the semester at the Assessment Centre at Casa Loma Campus or St. James Campus before classes start. If you do not take the Placement Test, you will be automatically placed in Foundation-level courses. The last day to take the Placement Test for English and/or Math for students who were automatically placed in Foundation course(s) is before the first day of the semester (first-year students only).

• You are not required to take the Placement test if:

• You have already taken an Admissions Assessment (test) to be admitted to the College. For students who have already taken the Admissions Assessment, the results of that test will be used to place you in the appropriate English and Math courses

OR

• You are applying for a Post-Graduate Certificate or Degree program

Placement Testing determines if you are ready to take the College-level courses in English and/or Math in the first semester, or if you need to take a Foundation level course first to further develop your skills. Therefore, the Placement Test is a very important part of your academic success.

Late Attendance:  

One, you must immediately withdraw from your program to avoid being charged one semester’s fees by going to the withdraw policy webpage to withdraw and or request a refund of fees paid less the administrative charge. Two, if you want to defer to the next available intake, notify your Admissions Officer immediately to receive instructions on how to defer your program. Deferral to a future term, however, does not guarantee you a seat as programs could already be closed due to the volume of applications received. Please note program deferrals to the next semester will not automatically withdraw you from already registered courses so it is very important to follow step one above.  

Accommodation in Toronto:  

Arrange for a place to stay in Toronto before arrival. If you do not have local friends or relatives to help you find a place, George Brown Polytechnic has a student residence which you may want to consider applying for. For details, please go to the residence webpage. You may also want to consider staying with a Canadian family through a Homestay Program.  

Online Marketplace for Student Housing 

George Brown Polytechnic has partnered with 4stay, an online marketplace for student housing. They help students, interns and professionals connect with local hosts, roommates and room providers, and they match the right guests with quality hosts. Search for thousands of stays around the campus as they have over 100,000 rooms, homes and homestays on their platform. 

Visit 4Stay to search for a listing. 

Airport Arrival:  

When you arrive at Canadian Immigration at the port of entry (i.e., airport in Canada), you will be issued your study permit and may be asked for the following documents:  

• The letter of introduction from the visa office that you received when your study permit was approved (this contains your permit reference number, and the officer needs this letter to issue your study permit).  
• Your passport and Temporary Resident Visa (TRV) if required;  
• Copy of your acceptance letter from George Brown Polytechnic;  
• A list of any items that you are sending separately (i.e., not cleared personally on your date of arrival); and  
• Proof that you have enough money to support yourself during your stay in Canada.  
• Please be sure to retrieve your study permit before exiting the airport!  

Arrival Lobby:  

Pearson International Airport has two terminals but no matter which terminal you arrive in, the layout is quite similar. After completing Immigration and Customs procedures, you will enter the arrival lobby where you can be met by a friend, relative or representative from the homestay program (if you have arranged for optional airport pick-up with your homestay).  

Information Counter:  

If for some reason you do not connect with the person who is meeting you, there is also an information counter in the arrival lobby where you can page the person. Please look for a ? sign.  

Money Exchange:  

Ensure you get some Canadian cash and coins, particularly 25 cents coins (also called quarters) so you are able to use the phones and have some spending money. You can change money at the currency exchange booths located in the arrival lobby.  

Telephones:  

Located throughout the arrival lobby, you can call your contacts by using quarters, dimes and nickels.  

Transportation:  

If you did not arrange for someone to meet you at the airport and you know the address where you will be staying, there are taxi and airport limousine services right outside the arrival lobby. If you are taking a taxi or an airport limousine, show the address to the driver and ask how much the fare (cost) will be. Public transportation by buses that will connect you to a Subway system is also available outside the arrival area. Please note the subway system only operates until approximately 1:00 am. Fares* are $3.25 and require exact change. Drivers do not carry change. If you are going to downtown Toronto, you can also take the Union Pearson Express (UP Express), an airport rail link running between Toronto Pearson International Airport and Union Station downtown. For details, please visit www.upexpress.com 

TTC: 

Toronto has a good transportation system run by the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) through its network of subways, buses and streetcars. Each cash fare* is $3.25, but paying with a Presto card is cheaper. For more information, please visit www.ttc.ca. 

 Visit www.ttc.ca for any changes to the above information and fares.